The 101 Casino
Hours, Tables, Location Open 24/7. Phone: 707-795-6121. 15 tables. 5151 Montero Way, Petaluma CA. On the north side of the city, in a vaguely business-parky sort of area. The casino itself literally faces US 101. Games Limit hold 'em: 3/6, 4/8 with a half kill Omaha/8: 4/8 with a half kill. No-limit hold 'em: 2/5 blinds 50-500 buyin. 200-1000 buyin 5/10 blinds. 1000-uncapped buyin 10/20 blinds. Game Info The rake on 3/6 is $3+$1 jackpot for 7-9 players, $2+$1 for 2-6 players. The rake is taken from the pot after the flop. On 6/12, the rake is $4+$1 jackpot for 7-9 players, $3+$1 for 6 players, $2+1 for 2-5 players. No limit rake is $4+$1 jackpot for 7-9 players, $3+$1 for 6 players, $2+$1 for 5 or less players. No flop, no drop (only in NL). Chopping is allowed. If a player chooses to leave the table (and take their chips, to leave the game), they are not allowed to re-enter the game for at least 30 minutes. This is to enforce the intent behind the table stakes rule. They also have 21st Century Blackjack, 3 card poker, and Pai Gow. Blackjack starts running at around 9am every day, pai gow at 8 pm. Blinds: standard small and big blinds (e.g. 1 and 3 for the 3/6 game, 2 and 4 for the 4/8 game), but in all limit games the button acts as an additional $1 live blind. It is for the bad beat jackpot. Posting: New players need not post. Shuffling: Shufflemaster machines are standard on all tables. Wait Time Reasonable, but it's getting longer and longer. Without the River Card Room to relieve some of the 3/6 list, expect 10 people on the board. Can be long (or infinite) waits for rarely-spread games like 15/30. 3/6 and small no limit are always running. 15/30 sometimes run (usually on tournament nights), Omaha runs when they get a list. The NL games are 50-200 and 200-600. Tournaments * Tuesday, 7:00 pm: NLHE $40+$10, $2000 guaranteed. No rebuys. * Thursday, 7:00 pm: NLHE $40+$10, $2000 guaranteed. No rebuys. * Sunday, 5:00 pm: NLHE $15+$5, $500 guaranteed. Unlimited $10 rebuys, 1x$10 ao. Jackpots and Promotions * Bad Beat Jackpot: Quads or better beaten = And mini bad beat- Aces full beaten * Royal Flush Bonus: progressive by suit, only one hole card need play. Ranged from $125 to $1000. * High Hand Bonus: 4am-8am only, Mon-Fri. Highest hand in that 4-hour period wins $100. Must be at least aces full to qualify. * Bargain Buyin: every Mon-Fri from 8am-8:30am, get $60 in chips for $40 (must play for 2 hours to qualify) * Aces Cracked; Till 5 PM and after 1AM every weekday. Aces cracked, get a rack! Atmosphere Nice place with acceptable decor and efficient, capable employees. The re-model looks great. The building is built with extra insulation to shield patrons from the noise of the highway outside, and it does a great job: you actually forget you're right on US 101. The players seemed relatively happy and friendly. Neighborhood: An interesting part of town, this casino is situated in what is essentially a medium-scale office park. Right next door is a Quality Inn hotel where out-of-town business guests can stay. Seems very safe, and relatively upscale as far as poker-room-surroundings go. Parking about 100 spaces which runs out every tuesday, thursday,friday, and saturday. Tables and Chairs: Standard 9-player tables. Nice felt and padding. Chairs are extra nice, low-backed wheeled padded chairs. Service and Comps Sodas are free. Full menu available from the connected restaurant/bar. Prices are on the very low side, with amazing quality. The restaurant is called "City Limits". Service was relatively prompt and cheerful. No chip runners, but the floorman will act as a chip runner if they're available to do so. Links * Official 101 Casino Website, with tournament details, etc. * Article in the local paper, about a poker player playing there in a tournament in 2004 * Article in the local paper about their expansion plans * Nearest competitor is the River Rock Casino in Geyserville. Many locals (and even some casino employees) often zip up 101 about fifteen miles to go there. Visited by wiki authors Visited by MarkT in May 2006. BillL is a regular there. Sup Bro?